county commissioners

Karen Newman 

Kirk Rosenberger, Clay County’s Solid Waste Management Director, appeared before the County Commission at their Jan. 11 meeting. Referring to Solid Waste Management’s new Resource Recovery Campus that is under construction, Rosenberger began his presentation, “As with everything this year, prices are going up. There is a real sense of urgency with the timing on this. This is why I am coming to you today.”

Rosenberger’s request for the purchase of ten new roll-off containers at $8,150 each, for a total of $81,500, received unanimous approval.

Solid Waste management requested permission to purchase two new transfer trailers at $104,323.54 each. An existing Clay County transfer trailer can be retrofitted for $10,930.59. The total price for three trailers is $219,577.67

Rosenberg continued, “The garbage at the transfer stations is essentially put in the back of semi-trucks to be transferred to Perham’s Resource Recovery Facility or to the landfill. Because there is new technology used to fill the trucks, we need to get new transfer trailers.” He added that his department searched for used equipment to purchase but found none that was in a condition to be used by the county and quipped, “Honestly, any used equipment we could get, we don’t really want. There’s just not any around.”

Rosenberger began his presentation with a caution about timing. The new transfer trailers, if ordered on January 11, would be available in September or October of 2022 which is the anticipated time when the new transfer station will open.

Commissioner Kevin Campbell expressed cost concerns because the trucks from the Moorhead Transfer station are returning from the landfill empty (deadheading Campbell asked if there was a way that that the Prairie Lakes Municipal Solid Waste Authority trucks and the Moorhead Transfer Station trucks could exchange full transfer trailers for empty transfer trailers while each group is performing operations at the landfill site.

Rosenberger replied, “Probably not…we are talking about two different types of containers. The containers they have in Perham are a completely different type of container. These (transfer trailers in department’s request) are actually semi tractor-trailers.” He continued, “We are still in the beginning of coming up with an idea of how we can make this work. We can make this work, but I do think that this number of transfer trailers are appropriate even if we do that function.”  

Following discussion about cost concerns and the future of solid waste material transportation, the board moved to approve the purchase of one new transfer trailer and the retrofitting of one existing trailer for a total of $115,254.13.